[ExI] bees

[BillK]

On 2 December 2015 at 19:39, Anders Sandberg wrote:
> Just came across this paper, which is mildly hopeful in the sense that there
> is a backup for many (but not all) plants:
>
> Non-bee insects are important contributors to global crop pollination
> http://www.pnas.org/content/early/2015/11/24/1517092112.full.pdf
> http://www.pnas.org/content/early/2015/11/24/1517092112.abstract
>
> Wild and managed bees are well documented as effective pollinators of global
> crops of economic importance. However, the contributions by pollinators
> other than bees have been little explored despite their potential to
> contribute to crop production and stability in the face of environmental
> change. Non-bee pollinators include flies, beetles, moths, butterflies,
> wasps, ants, birds, and bats, among others.
<snip>


Non-bee pollinators have been little studied. Similarly whether they
are suffering declines like bees has not been studied.  If
insecticides and loss of habitat are affecting bees, then it is likely
that other insects are also affected.

<http://www.wired.com/2014/05/wild-bee-and-butterfly-declines/>

Quote:
Brandon Keim Science 05.06.14.
Beyond Honeybees: Now Wild Bees and Butterflies May Be in Trouble

Slowly but surely, though, results from field studies and anecdotal
reports from experts are piling up. They don’t paint a pretty picture.
Many pollinator populations seem to be dwindling.

Among other pollinators, iconic monarch butterfly declines are well
documented: Their numbers are now at a small fraction of historical
levels. And entomologist Art Shapiro of the University of California,
Davis spent most of the last four decades counting butterflies across
central California, and found declines in every region.
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BillK